BIG thanks to samebutharold for help on this post!
Ok here’s the deal: It is never ok to edit Zayn Malik’s eyes (or any other features) to be lighter.
- Whitewashing is when a PoC’s features are lightened/whitened to better comply with the white Western standards of beauty.
- Whitewashing is done because in Western society having lighter features is considered more attractive in all aspects of life. Lighter features are thought of as inherently better than darker features.
- That is racist.
The idea that Zayn is more attractive with lighter eyes is basically saying that features that are predominately white are more attractive than the features he has as a PoC. Lightening his features also takes away his heritage and replaces it with a white Western beauty ideal.
The whole thing reeks of “he would be more beautiful if he were whiter.”
When you take a picture of Zayn and his features to make it lighter/whiter you are whitewashing them and you are claiming that the most beautiful features are predominately white features.
Not to mention it’s fucking insulting. Saying that a person of color looks better with predominantly white features when I’m sure Zayn has already had the fucking “lighter is better” complex shoved down his throat all his life AND already has to answer ignorant ass questions just because he’s muslim/half pakistani. You’re just adding insult to your White Supremacy Oppression injury. CUT IT OUT.
Not saying there aren’t PoC who have blue eyes, because there are, that’s very plausible, just because they happen in all races does not make them a marker for every race. Blue eyes are universally associated with being white. Which is why they are placed on such a high pedestal in terms of western beauty ideals
- And when PoC do have blue/green/hazel eyes, they are viewed as more beautiful than PoC who have brown eyes. Which Zayn already has hazel eyes. If he did have blue eyes, that’d be fine, but Zayn’s eyes ARE NOT BLUE. SO, LEAVE THEM ALONE.
And before you come at me with “What about when people photoshop Harry/Niall/Liam/Louis eyes to be blue/brown/green/whatever color”
- Let’s not even pretend that Zayn’s experience as a PoC having white ideals of beauty shoved down his throat all his life is that same as his other four band members who are all white males, and already fit the standards of beauty given to us by society. Whether they already have blue eyes or not, they still fit within the description of the dominant race in society, and fit its beauty ideals. Giving them a different color eyes is not the same thing as giving Zayn blue eyes. It’s just giving them different colored eyes.
FUCKING LEAVE ZAYN’S EYES ALONE.
Zayn’s face is already scientifically proven to be perfect you literally cannot make it any better no matter how much insulting white washing you do to it.
